Manchester United are set to strengthen their goalkeeping department with a deal for Royal Antwerp’s Senne Lammens close to being agreed.
After suffering a 1-0 defeat to Arsenal in their Premier League opener at Old Trafford, Manchester United have now turned their attention to their first away fixture of the season.
United’s revamped attack showed promise, with debutants Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo both delivering encouraging performances. The pair will be eager to carry that momentum into Sunday’s clash with Fulham.
The goalkeeper situation, a hot topic throughout pre-season, remains under scrutiny. With André Onana sidelined for much of the summer, manager Ruben Amorim handed a start to Turkish international Altay Bayındır against Arsenal.
Bayındır impressed for much of the match but was ultimately at fault for the decisive moment, failing to deal with a corner that allowed Riccardo Calafiori to score the winner.
Lammens deal is almost done
It was recently reported that United were advancing in talks to sign Lammens, with a fee of around £17.3 million being seen as enough to see the current Royal Antwerp keeper join United.
Now, as reported by transfer journalist Graeme Bailey, the deal is now “almost done”, with Lammens rejecting multiple clubs to join United this summer.
As one keeper comes in, another will be expected to depart this summer, and it may be Bayındır that will be on the chopping block, with the outlet reporting that the Turkish international is already looking for a new club following Lammens’ pending move.
“Andre Onana’s immediate future is not called into question with the impending arrival of Senne Lammens,” Bailey explained to United in Focus.
“Bayindir may have started the first game, but his future is far from certain now – Lammens has been told he is coming in to challenge Onana.
“I am told that intermediaries are now actively working hard on finding Bayindir that new club. It could be a loan at this poin,t but work is being done.”
Lammens a sign of positive transfer strategy change
United have been linked with a number of different keepers this summer, but the signing of the exciting 23-year-old talent shows a clear shift in strategy from past seasons to try and make the club much more sustainable.
Following the announcement that Gianluigi Donnarumma had no future at PSG, United became linked with a move for one of Europe’s best keepers. Aston Villa’s Emi Martinez was also linked, but the fact that neither of the two have been signed could be a sign that the club have finally started to learn from their transfer mistakes which has cause the predicament they find themselves in now.
Read More: Manchester United ‘could transfer list’ seventh Rúben Amorim player as deadline day closes in
United have suffered heavy financial losses over the past three years, leaving the club in turmoil when it comes to Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR). As a result of United’s poor spending over the past decade, Ineos have been forced to change the transfer strategy, with a report in The Athletic reporting that salaries will be the key to United’s transfer planning moving forward.
This is evident from their business so far. Keepers like Donnarumma and Martinez would have demanded huge wages in order to sanction a move to Old Trafford, and the days of signing mega-stars is seemingly over with Ineos, with the club shifting to signing exciting talent for cheaper.
According to Capology, United’s weekly payroll for the 2022/23 season (excluding bonuses) was £4,657,500, while it currently stands at £3,501,000, a clear shift in strategy.
Make sure to follow UtdDistrict on X, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok to never miss out on any of our Manchester United content. Our podcast, What the Devil?, is streamed live every Thursday at 12:30 pm (BST) on the United View YouTube channel.